2 . Find your new favorite hobby

Challenging and fun hobbies have the power to make us happier and healthier. They can lead to better physical health, lower stress, greater life satisfaction, a larger social network and improve work performance.     1     But where do you start? Here are some tips on how to discover the hobbies you don’t yet know you’ll love.

Ask yourself how you want to feel

Hobbies present an escape—they can help you get out of your head and calm down. Ask yourself how you want an activity to make you feel. Mentally engaged? Distracted? Relaxed? Socially connected?     2     Recognize that you have different needs at different moments, and that’s OK.

Start small

    3     Try to figure out gradually if it’s right for you. You can always do more later. If you’re wondering if paintballing might be a good fit, join an outing or two with a local Meet-up group. Or sign up for a one-time pottery class rather than a set of eight.

    4    

When people feel guilty about spending time on leisure, they experience increased symptoms of depression and anxiety. Give yourself permission to do something that you like and keep in mind that if a hobby makes you healthier and happier, everyone around you will benefit. Think of discovering new hobbies as a way to add new dimensions to your life, and enjoy the process.

Take a trip back in time

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? The answer could point you toward an appealing hobby. Revisit some activities you loved when you were young, like drawing, putting together model kits, collecting things or building clay figures, which is really helpful to start your new hobbies.     5    

Keep a list

Keep a list on your fridge or other things of all the things that strike you as interesting. Write down potential interests as they come to you, and you’ll have no shortage of options to explore when you’re ready.

A．Remove guilt.

B．Keep optimistic.

C．Plus, they often promote connection with others.

D．Those childhood delights can easily develop into adult hobbies.

E．Don’t invest a ton of time and money in a new hobby immediately.

F．You shoud keep an open mind and don’t ignore some potential hobbies.

G．It’s also helpful to consider what your life is missing, like creativity or physical activity.

4 . Many young Tibetan college graduates long for a stable job in the public sector after graduation, but Samdrub Norbu is an exception. The 23-year-old founder of Yangchak Art has been running a Tibetan guitar business for more than half a year since getting his degree from Tibet University last year.

Samdrub Norbu, born to a Tibetan family in Lhokha, a cradle of Tibetan civilization, is captivated by Tibetan culture. “The Tibetan guitar is what I love. That’s why I chose this business,” Samdrub Norbu said. “I don’t know what the future hold, but I am happy every day about what I have been trying so far, never feeling tired.” He has a distinctive dual motive: earning a profit while preserving Tibetan musical instrument culture.

Despite finally achieving success, Samdrub Norbu’s business activities in Tibetan instruments got off to a shaky start. While still studying in college three years ago, he opened a shop in his home county selling music al instruments. However, the business failed and he lost almost 500,000 yuan ($69,000), which had a huge impact on him and his family.

“The most pain I suffered while having difficulties was not physical, but mental,” he said. During his darkest days, his relatives—apart from his supportive mother and father—friends and even his girlfriend, abandoned him.

In spite of the failure and setbacks in life, his strong determination to fulfill his dream emboldened him once more and supported him in the success of running the same business again after his graduation. In just a few months since opening the first shop in Lhasa last year, his business has already expanded, with a second shop opening in Lhasa four months ago. The number of staff in his workshop has grown to 10.

Besides selling various Tibetan guitars, he also operates a workshop to produce them himself and runs Tibetan guitar learning courses for beginners. He aims to found an art school in the future.

“Like the Tibetan saying, ‘There is no room for sorrow in a place where one can find music and dancing’, I believe what I have been doing can bring happiness to others.”

1. Why is Samdrub Norbu referred to as an exception?

A．He graduated with honours.	B．He pursued a stable job.
C．He enjoyed playing the Tibetan guitar.	D．He started his own business.

2. Which is closest in meaning to “captivated” in paragraph 2?

A．Confused.

B．Attracted.

C．Identified.

D．Represented.

3. What contributed most to Norbu’s success?

A．His academic achievement.	B．His trustworthy relatives.:
C．His strong resolution.	D．His wealthy families.

4. What can we learn from the text?

A．A man can do no more than he can.	B．Adversity makes a man wise, not rich.
C．A good beginning makes a good ending.	D．Do what you love and love what you do.

7 . Four-legged robots like Boston Dynamics’ Spot and Cheetah owe almost all their quickness to fancy footwork. In biology, however, a four-legged animal’s movement, flexibility, and complex motor functions come almost entirely from its spine (脊柱). If artificial spines could be put into such designs, engineers could find entirely new approaches to accurate mobility.

Now, engineers are reportedly a few steps further towards spine-centric, four-legged bots thanks to a research team’s rat-inspired robot. NeRmo is a biomimetic and four-legged robot that depends on an innovative motor-tendon (运动肌腱的) structure to move around environments.

As far as looks go, NeRmo mirrors a mouse’s bone system. The robot’s solid front half houses its electronics systems, while its latter half functions much as an actual flexible spine would. Artificial tendons passing through the spine as well as the robot’s arm and knee joints allow NeRmo even more mouselike movements alongside quicker turning times. NeRmo’s tendon system prevented the need for any muscle while still allowing for smooth bending capabilities, i. e. side-to-side, and up-and-down.

To test their new design, the team ran NeRmo through a series of four experiments to demonstrate balancing, straight-line walking, quick turning, and maze navigation. Each trial included two rounds — one with the spinal system engaged, and the other with it disabled. Across the board, NeRmo performed the tasks better, faster, and more accurately when it combined the spine with its movements. Maze navigation, however, was NeRmo’s true shining moment. With its spine engaged, the mouse-bot completed its maze runs much faster than simply wandering through without spinal support.

Although still in its early stages, researchers believe further design involving the spinal systems in future four-legged robots could vastly improve their functionality. If NeRmo wasn’t proof enough, think of it this way — MIT’s Cheetah can run 13 feet per second with just one joint copying the bending of the spine forward and backward. NeRmo, meanwhile, has eight joints.

1. What is the limitation of Boston Dynamics’ Spot and Cheetah?

A．Having an unattractive appearance.

B．Referring to few biological bases.

C．Having a strict range of applications.

D．Lacking spine-based moving accuracy.

2. Which of the following makes NeRmo move more like mice?

A．The tendon system.	B．The bone system.
C．The muscle system.	D．The knee joint.

3. What did the four testing experiments find?

A．NeRmo had a great sense of direction.

B．The spinal system bettered NeRmo’s movement.

C．NeRmo without an artificial spine lost control easily.

D．Artificial spines gave hope to disabled animals.

4. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A．Putting NeRmo into use has difficulties in practice.

B．Reducing the number of joints in robots is necessary.

C．Applying spinal systems to robots has a promising outlook.

D．Creating more four-legged robots is a matter of time.

8 . It wasn’t until I got into college and took a class on creative writing that I began to trust my own madness. The professor encouraged us to color outside the lines and trust our abilities as a writer. We had weekly sessions where we read each other’s work and had to give constructive criticism.

On our first assignment, I struggled with getting my ideas onto paper. I knew that kind of story I wanted to tell, but as a reserved young man, I was terrified of judgement from my peers. I was afraid they would think my writing was too dark or really messed up. But finally, after spending hours thinking of making the writing more socially acceptable, I decided to write it like I felt it.

In the next critique session, I was shocked at the reaction from my peers. There was some constructive criticism, which really helped me improve, but overall, they loved how realistic and convincing my writing was. At the end of the class, the professor asked me if she could use my assignment as a sample for her other classes to know that they can trust their own madness with their writing.

For the final we had a huge paper for which we had to write on Henry V. The professor encouraged me to write it in the voice I had developed in the creative writing class, so I did. The consequence was that she called it a graduate level paper and asked to use it as another sample.

That year I ended up winning a writing award. I also entered a writing contest online and out of hundreds of entries, got an honorable mention. And that was when I decided to have a shot at fiction.

1. What does the underlined phrase “color outside the lines” mean in the first paragraph?

A．Stress the words.	B．Generate new ideas.
C．Add color to the lines.	D．Take risks.

2. What happened with the author’s first assignment?

A．He messed it up.	B．He didn’t know how to do it.
C．He felt insecure about it.	D．He adjusted it in an acceptable way.

3. What can we know from paragraph 3?

A．His peers thought his writing was persuasive.

B．His peers criticized his writing style.

C．The professor asked him to teach others to write.

D．His writing reached graduate level.

4. What was the secret of the author’s success in writing?

A．His persistence in writing.	B．Trust in his own madness.
C．His professor’s encouragement.	D．Constructive criticism from his peers.

9 . The heat and humidity in summer can make even the most dedicated runners want to stay inside. Here are some tips which can help you remain on track even when the weather is less than ideal.

First, do remember to stay hydrated when running in summer. When it’s hot, you will sweat more and lose essential electrolytes (电解质). To avoid heat exhaustion, dizziness and other heat-related issues, drink plenty of fluids before, during, and after your run.     1    

Another way to make summer running easier is to get an early start. The temperature   is typically cooler in the morning, and the sun will become more intense as the day goes on.     2     Further, starting your run early will even help you make the most of your day.

    3     However, it’s essential to dress appropriately for summer running. One tip is to choose light-colored clothing, as darker colors absorb more heat. You should also look for fabrics that are breathable and quick-drying.

When running in the summer, pay attention to your body, and take breaks as needed in case of overexertion (过度负荷) which can lead to heat stroke.     4     Just slow down your usual pace and focus on running for long, rather than trying to cover a lot of ground quickly, and you will be able to enjoy your run while staying safe.

After a hot run, drink plenty of fluids and take a few minutes to stretch.     5     By cooling down properly, you’ll be able to beat the heat. In addition, it helps to regulate your body temperature and prevent muscle soreness.

A．Then, hop in a shower or take a dip in the pool.

B．The heat will make it challenging to run outside.

C．This will help you keep your body functioning at its best.

D．Hence, on top of tips above, it’s important to pace yourself.

E．So listen to your body and take breaks if you start feeling overheated or tired.

F．By doing it, you can avoid the heat and crowds that often build up later in the day.

G．As the weather gets warmer, it can be tempting to put on your shorts and tank top for a run.

10 . Going to the bathroom while floating in space can be tricky. Gravity is very weak in space, meaning toilets cannot flush (冲刷) the same way that they do on Earth. In a new contest, NASA is asking inventors from around the world to develop a new space toilet. The space agency is looking for a design that would work both aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as well as on the moon. NASA plans to use this toilet aboard a future lunar lander as part of the Artemis program, which will send humans to the moon by 2024.

Anyone can apply to this challenge, and the winning design will receive a $20,000 prize. The second-place design will win $10,000, and the third-place winner will win $5,000. The contest includes a “junior” category in which anyone under the age of 18 can apply with their creative space toilet idea. Winners in the junior category will receive public recognition and NASA souvenirs.

Designs should also take up no more than 4.2 cubic feet of space. The toilet itself shouldn’t be louder than 60 decibels, which is about the same volume as a bathroom fan. The space toilet will have to be able to collect both urine (尿液) and fecest (粪便) at the same time. It should be able to hold at least a quarter gallon (1 liter) of liquid waste. It should also be able to hold 17.6 ounces (500 grams) of solid waste. The final requirements are that the system must be able to store or get rid of waste, and it should also be able to be cleaned and maintained in five minutes or less.

Hopefully, this toilet will be an improvement on previous systems for waste removal. A waste removal system is a method of disposing of urine and feces. If you are a creative inventor, come and join us!

1. Which aspect of the design is not required in the contest?

A．Its covering space.

B．Its volume.

C．Its time of cleaning.

D．Its weight.

2. What can you know about this contest?

A．It’s a toilet design contest held by ISS for the American inventors.

B．It has a total prize pool of 45,000 to be shared by winning teams.

C．For the contestants, there are no limits to your age and nationalities.

D．If you are the winner under the age of 18, you will win 5,000.

3. What does the underlined word “disposing” mean?

A．Giving away.

B．Putting off.

C．Getting rid of.

D．Picking out.

4. What is the purpose of writing this text?

A．To introduce a toilet design contest.	B．To attract inventors to take part in the contest.
C．To explain the necessity of a toilet in space.	D．To show the difficulty of living in space.